Paul presents his thesis to the church in Rome in his opening chapter, Romans 1:16-17;
“16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel;
it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith.’”
Paul, who identifies himself as a “slave,” proposes the idea that faith in Christ aligns him with the “power of God.” A powerless slave finds power in a master who enables him to live by wisdom in this world. The world does not understand. He no longer answers to the whims of people but has found the God of the universe who has all power and is willing to come to his slave’s aid. God is not a taskmaster sitting off in the clouds evaluating his work but a being that incarnates and empowers him to be his better self for his own fulfillment and for the betterment of the world. Gospel, which we often call the “good news”, tells us that God has come to us and we have power as we believe. Perhaps power is not your thing but being valuable enough to help is a desire in all our hearts.
Paul also talks about the righteousness of God that is found through the Gospel. Righteousness is being “right” with God. We use the word forgiven. We could also say whole, having our record wiped clean, having no barriers between the eternal and myself. God is not out in the clouds offended by my humanness but partnering with me, as I will allow him, to make life better. The slave has been given voice and vote in the relationship with the Almighty. The Gospel is the good news of available relationship, as we believe, faith.
“Faith” like love or peace or joy is one of those words we can only see in action. It is relational, not theoretical, and not contractual. Faith opens the door to relationship with a God who shares power and righteousness with his creation. Today we might think of the places where we feel powerless or unrighteous. We can invite the God of the universe to help us cope and clean up those areas. That is good news for sure. We are not in this alone. Blessings.
On the Way to Wonder 